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Damiano Damiani

Damiano Damiani was a very prominent Italian Film director most famous for his contribution to the Spaghetti Western genre. Directing his first film, a documentary, "La Banda d'Affari" (1947). Then working as a screenwriter for some years prior to directing his first feature film "Il Rossetto" in 1960. Winning the Golden Shell at the San Sebastián International Film Festival for his film "Arturo's Island" (1962), a film inspired by the novel "L'isola di Arturo" by author Elsa Morante. He then followed up with a series if box office successes which was made popular by their moralist tone. His ground breaking film, "A Bullet for the General" (1966), is said to be one of the first "political" Spaghetti Westerns. Beginning with his film "The Day of the Owl" (1968), Damiani proceeded to incorporate more social criticism within his films whilst portraying the American type action and plot. A crime-drama film he created, "Confessions of a Police Captain" (1971) won the Golden Prize at the 7th Moscow International Film Festival in 1971 and the Prix lntemational de l'Academie du Cinema at the Étoile de Cristal Awards in 1972. Furthering his career in film he debuted as an actor in Florestano Vancini's "The Matteotti Murder" (1973). Next, directing the cult horror film "Amityyville II: The Possession" (1982) for Italian film producer Dino de Laurentiis. Damiani also directed the sensationally popular Italian TV series "La Piovra", that showcased and dramatized the Italian Mafia's involvement with Italian politics. Directing his last film in 2002 called "Assassini dei giorni di festa" a film about some actors in Buenos Aries, Argentina, that are left with no work and resort to crime to make ends meet.

Early Life

Born in in 1922 in Pasiano di Pordenone, Friuli, Italy, Damiani studied painting at Accademia di Brera in Milan prior to engaging in cinema in 1946. Before his career as a big screen writer, Damiani was first a comic cartoonist in association with the "Group of Venice". Focused on the comic Asso di Picche (1945-1949) the comic featured a masked vigilante who fights crime all over the globe and is in charge of the crime stopping organization, "Band of Panthers". A smaller publication that he also contributed to through illustration was "Mike Lazy" (1946) producing two volumes in the Albo Dinamite by Edizioni Il Carro in Milan. Then individually producing his own gangster comic "Pat la Rocca" in 1946. Two books were published in the collection Collana Gialli Film by Edizioni Il Carro. A third comic was scheduled and advertised to release yet never made it to the mark. Continuing his work in the comic industry, Damiani, wrote scripts for photo comics "Arizona Kid" (1949) published in the Mondadori magazines in the Avventuroso Film (Adventurous Film) and Bolero Film. Then moving on to be involved in the launch of similar magazine called Sogno alongside editor Luciano Pedrocchi, working as a screen writer for an adventure comic 'I 3 Boyscouts' (Edizioni Castello, 1948), which was illustrated by Rino Ferrari, Giovanni Benvenuti and Andrea Bresciani. However, later in his career, Damiani also did some illustration work to the crime noir comic "Hogart il Giustiziere" but was reprinted and published under the title "Bogart il Giusitiziere"(1968-1969).

Prominent Films

Damiano Damiani then produced what is labeled as a "political Western" with his film A Bullet For the General (1967). Often this film is interpreted to be an allegorical speculation of the US involvement in South-American politics. The film was co-scripted by Franco Solinas who also worked on scripting The Battle of Algiers (1967) A huge film that was used to promote revolution via terrorist tactics.

Citations

1. Elsa Morante e il cinema: L'isola di Arturo di Damiano Damiani
2. Dana Renga: Mafia Movies: A Reader
3. Austin Fisher: Radical Frontiers in the Spaghetti Westerns: Politics, Violence, and Popular Italian Cinema
4. Jean Gili, Hommage: Damiano Damiani 1922-2013: Cinema D'engagement ou Cinema de Divertissement
5. Bas Schuddeboom: Damiano Damiani